Lei Zhen's eyes were wide open in surprise as his body seemed to be hit by a stun spell, immobilized.
All he could do was spread his arms open as he witnessed Kate kissing him on the lips.
Lei Zhen was completely bewildered by Kate's action of suddenly kissing him.
Luckily it was just a kiss and not a passionate one is given that Kate pulled herself away after some seconds.
Kate held a solemn expression as she nodded her head.
"Yup, I'm right about my feelings." She said casually.
"Feelings?"
"Mhmm, I kept thinking about your words and thought, is it really true I develop feelings for you because of your timely arrival in my time of need? But that kiss just now pushed back that claim since I felt like I wanted to kiss you more." She said solemnly.
Not an ounce of embarrassment could be seen on her face when she said such words in front of a man.
"Kate… I-"
Before Lei Zhen could even continue his sentence, Kate turned around and placed her hands behind her back.
"No need to say anything else, Lei Zhen. I know you wish to leave Yors Castle soon considering your intelligence and power. Hence, I will not try to convince you to stay, so allow me to be willful for once." She said, her body trembling slightly.
Seeing that, Lei Zhen could only nod his head and not say anything else.
To him, it was a simple kiss, but to her, it was her way of expressing her courage and motivation to strive for what she wanted. At the very least, she could tell herself that she had tried her best and not felt any regret.
"Anyway, I'm sure my father would need my help to cleanse the rotten souls of our country, so I'm going to head off now." Kate then said, rushing away to leave the scene without giving him a chance to speak.
'What an unexpected situation…' Lei Zhen thought to himself. It would be a lie if he felt nothing from the kiss.
He stared at his own reflection through the water fountain before shaking his head. Putting his mask back on, Lei Zhen read a message sent by Griselda.
It was a message that said the building of their guild's headquarters had been completed.
Turning around, Lei Zhen went the opposite way of Kate.
Sometime later, Lei Zhen arrived at a seemingly popular area of Yors Castle and from afar, he could see their headquarters.
Zero Fear's headquarters building was a towering structure of gleaming marble and polished stone. It stood at the center of the city with the front entrance being grand and imposing.
The entrance was built with large, ornate doors that seemed to be welcome for guests or guild members.
"Just how many budgets were used to make this?" Lei Zhen was astonished by the glamorous entrance alone.
However, his shock seemed to be even further by the time he opened the door and entered inside.
The moment he entered, he could see the building was a labyrinth of corridors and halls, each one leading to a different room or chamber.
The main hall was a grand, open space with a high ceiling, marble floors, and several large chandeliers hanging from the ceiling.
There was also a nameplate by the wall indicating that this was where guild meetings, events, and celebrations would be held in the future.
"Did Griselda burn a hole in my budget?" Lei Zhen asked as he glanced around, only to be more astounded to see more decoration.
Off to one side was the armory, where guild members could equip themselves with weapons, armor, and other gear.
There was another door that was labeled a training room where members could hone their skills and learn new techniques, and there was even an infirmary built in which injured members would be treated.
Just when Lei Zhen thought there couldn't be any more surprise, Griselda and Tie Longkun came down from a spiraling staircase.
"Hehe, see how grand our headquarters is?" Griselda chuckled softly.
"Is this everything?" Lei Zhen asked, his mouth practically gasping for air.
"Of course… not," Griselda shook her head.
"If you come upstairs, there are even more things available." She added.
And by those words, Lei Zhen went upstairs, and finally, his legs turned to jelly as he plopped to the floor.
Upstairs had a grand library, where members could research ancient spells, historical events, and other useful information.
In addition to that, there were the guild leader's chambers located on the top floor, a spacious room with a large fireplace and comfortable seating.
pαndα,noνɐ1,сoМ It was a chamber where the guild leader would receive visitors and discuss important matters.
If Lei Zhen had to describe their guild headquarters in one word, it would be extravagant.
Lei Zhen could say the guild headquarters building was a place of power, knowledge, and community.
A community in which there were hubs of activities where the guild members could come together to share their skills, support each other and make their way in the world.
And even that alone would be humble of him.
"We only have three members overall, with one of them being the guild leader and the other one being the vice leader." Lei Zhen screamed at the top of his lungs.
"Did we really need to waste that much money for all of these?" He added, feeling like his gold coins were disappearing in front of him.
Every part of the headquarters was extravagant and built meticulously. There was no way he could pay the price for all of these.
Hell, he might even have to file for bankruptcy and when that happens, there would be no place for him to hide and cry.
While Lei Zhen was ready to bawl his tears out, Griselda tilted her head slightly in confusion.
"What are you even talking about?" She asked.
"As the Chancellor, everything was practically free because all of them were built by people that you have saved, whether it's their son or nephew."